Today was Sunday. After a miscommunication about when I needed to wake up (they say the hour and then minus the minutes, like nueve menos cuarto [9:00-15 minutes = 8:45] instead of just ocho cuarenta y cinco) and some waiting for Whitney to find my street, we headed off for church.
We had our route mapped out and there's a road that basically leads straight there. Guess who we stumbled upon on our way there? Los misioneros. The missionaries just happened to be out and about talking with people. There are only two missionaries in this city, but they do have a meeting house here. It was great to speak English with them. I think they enjoyed it because there isn't anyone else they speak English with here.
As we walked up the stairs to the chapel, I said aloud, "Is this it?" It doesn't really look much like a church, but it's super nice and it's a good size for the area here. We sang with the Spanish hymns and listened to the testimonies today. They have to use a stereo for the music. They have a beautiful piano but nobody plays, so it sits untouched with a vase of flowers on it. I'm trying to convince Whitney to give it a go next Sunday.
They involved us in the reading of scriptures and quotes, so that was fun. They even asked us if we wanted to pray. Funny, but that's going to take some listening and practice to get that right. Two other guys from our big group came too. I'm envious of their ability to listen and speak in Spanish because both of them served Spanish-speaking missions. Being immersed in a language for two years definitely gives you the advantage in a Spanish-speaking country...
I'm improving, but as Tomás told his daughter, Marián, tonight, my Spanish is so-so. Gracias, Tomás. That's the point of this viaje though. To better my Spanish. I want to read more in Spanish. My Libro de Mormón y Harry Potter. I brought both of my Spanish copies.
Anyway, church was amazing. The people are fantastic and all were so welcoming. I kissed so many cheeks today as I met people. I'm finally getting used to it though. Anyway, after church, Whitney came over to meet my host fam and we ate a delicious lunch of estrella sopa and garbanzo beans with potatoes and meat. And chocolate flan, made by Loreto's mom, Natalia. : ]
Sundays are so calm in Gijón. I was so tired today, and after church we wanted to go to the beach for a walk, but we ended up camped on a bench in the middle of a town square with all the other people who were enjoying a calm Sunday. Most stores are closed on Sundays. My host family stayed home all day and watched lots of sports and some family came over to visit. I took a two and a half hour siesta. Fue muuuy bien.
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| Es todo mi grupo... except for Whitney. She got lost that day en route to our bus tour. |
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| This is Whitney. She's cool. I look ridic in this picture. These are our the-bus-just-broke-down-what-do-we-do-now faces. |
Anyway, I miss you all. I've Skyped a few of mis amigos y miembros de mi familia. If you have Skype or want to get it, I'd love to chat with you via video. It's free (gratis)! : ]
Anyway, hasta luego!
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